Choices
by verdragon
Summary: Harry isn't following the plan anymore, and he's got his own ideas about allies. SLASH DMHP
1. A meeting

Green eyes watched from an alley between two buildings in Diagon Alley as Lucius Malfoy and his son stopped in front of one of the buildings. The elder Malfoy turned sharp eyes on his heir, and hissed out a short statement before entering the shop. The owner of those eyes blinked in shock as he took in the state of Draco Malfoy.

The icy blonde's skin was even paler than it normally was and there was a fine sheen of perspiration on his face. His eyes were slightly unfocused, and the pupils seemed larger than they should have been, despite the noonday sun beating down. The watcher observed the trembling of the boy's limbs, and the way that it was occasionally interrupted by a strong twitch. He knew the symptoms, had suffered them himself: Draco Malfoy had been subjected to the Cruciatus curse.

Harry Potter blinked several times in shock before his mind began functioning again. _Malfoy_ had been under the most painful curse known to wizard-kind. Harry knew that Draco was not a death eater, the visions that Occulmency did nothing to halt told him that at least. So who had cursed the blonde?

'It had to have been his father or mother,' Harry thought. 'No one else would have dared. It wasn't Voldemort, I know that, and the Malfoys would have killed anyone else who would have tried. Certainly, Draco wouldn't be out here, still in pain, if his father didn't want him that way.' Something shifted inside of Harry's mind as his whole worldview changed. The spoiled Slytherin prince was nothing of the sort.

The Boy-Who-Lived snorted softly. 'Is anything in the wizarding world what I was led to believe? Draco's been tortured, I'm on the run from the Order, what's next? Tom in a tutu?'

Watching Draco tremble, Harry made a lightning fast decision. Putting his seeker-reflexes to good use, he snaked out a hand and yanked the blonde into the alleyway. It was a good thing that Malfoy was weakened from the curse, because otherwise Harry would have never been able to shift the larger boy. 'Merlin, he weighs a ton! Would I weigh that much if the fucking Dursley's ever fed me?'

In an instant, Harry had swept Draco's feet out from underneath him and leaned over the Slytherin. "Hello Malfoy," he said, smirking, "having a bad day?"

Draco stared blankly at Harry. "Potter? What? How?" The blonde seemed unable to finish a thought, which worried Harry slightly. If Draco couldn't think, how could he get the boy out of here before the elder Malfoy returned? Harry nearly smacked himself as he remembered the vial of potion in his pocket. It was a post-Cruciatus potion, one he had paid a great deal for the recipe for.

'Idiot,' he snarled at himself. 'As if Draco can even think right now, let alone come up with snappy comebacks.' Harry pulled the vial from his pocket and all but forced the potion down the shaken blonde's throat. "Better now, Malfoy?"

The blonde nodded as the trembling eased. He drew a deep breath, then looked up at his benefactor, "Why, Potter?" he asked.

Harry sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "Malfoy, I might fight with you at school and I might think you're a git, but I wouldn't leave you suffering. I've had that curse myself, and trust me, I'd have to hate you a lot more than I do to want you to feel that."

"So the golden boy saves the day again. Whoopie! Now go away so he doesn't see you... or worse, ME with you," Draco said.

"Don't be a bigger idiot than you were born to be, Malfoy," Harry said. "What's daddy-dearest going to do to you when he gets out of that shop and you aren't in the agony he wants you in?" The blonde began to snap back, but Harry cut him off. "Don't interrupt. I'm not stupid Draco; if your father didn't want you in that state he could easily have given you the same potion I did. Now, maybe it wasn't a good idea for me to interfere, Merlin knows my hero-complex will kill me one day, but it's done. And that means that you now have a choice."

"Choice, Potter? What in the seven hells are you talking about?" The Malfoy heir's face was growing red with confusion and irritation.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Simple, fool. I already said that I don't hate you enough to see you suffer that, so obviously your choice is to let me help you or not."

"Help me, Potter! How the hell do you think you can help me? My father is going to kill me, and even if you could get Dumbledore to help me, I'm not going to turn into a Gryffindor. I hate Muggles, and I want nothing to do with Mudbloods, even if I don't want to kill them. So how are you going to help me?"

A sharp gleam shined from Harry's eyes. "Who said anything about the old coot? As for your... opinions, they're yours and you have a right to them as long as you aren't hurting anyone else. And I never asked you to become a Gryffindor. I know enough of them already." He would have continued, but Draco cut him off.

"Wait, Potter, you said 'them'. You are a Gryffindor too, remember?" The blonde said, a snarky tone weaving through his voice.

Smirking, Harry restrained a laugh. "Oh, yes. Anyway, that's beside the point. I have an offer for you, Malfoy. You can go back out there, resume your life as it was, or come with me, and be free. So what's it gonna be, slavery or freedom?"


	2. Going home

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A/N: Please be kind. This isthe first fanfic I ever posted, and I'm gonna make mistakes. Oh, and I don't own any of this, probably not even the plot. This is going to be slash eventually, so you have been warned. Take the rating seriously, my characters tend to have potty-mouths, and there will be violence, child abuse, sexual situations, etc in this fic.**

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Draco gaped at Harry. "You have got to be kidding me."

"Nope. This is it, Malfoy, your chance. I am offering you the best deal you will ever get. So what's your choice?" Harry leaned against the wall, looking cool and calm, as if the answer meant nothing to him.

"And what do you get in return?" Malfoy asked.

"Simple. I don't have to kill you. Or fight you. Or worry about you trying to kill me. That's it. Now, are you coming or not? Cause your father is going to be done in there soon and I'd like to be as far away as possible before then," he said, pushing off of the wall.

Draco considered his options for a minute before heaving himself to his feet. "Let's go then. I really have no desire to meet my father on the way out."

* * *

Harry led Draco through ever dirtier and smaller alleyways. After a few minutes, it was apparent that they had crossed into Muggle London. The pure-blooded wizard was confused.

"Potter?" He asked.

"What?"

"How did we get to Muggle London without going through the Leaky Cauldron?"

The raven-haired boy paused a moment. "That's not the only way in or out of the Alley. Hell, they'd have caught me a week ago if I had to keep going through there. Anyway, hurry up and follow me. I'll answer at least some of your questions when we get to my place." Without another word, Harry resumed his grueling pace through the alleys.

Draco shrugged and turned his attention to keeping up with the smaller boy. Playing against Potter in quidditch, he'd known the Gryffindor was fast on a broom, but he hadn't ever seen quite how fast Potter was on his feet. It was almost impossible to keep up with the boy, despite Draco's much longer legs.

In a tiny alley next to an enormous dumpster, Harry stopped and turned to Draco. "Are you wearing pants under those robes?"

"What?" Draco nearly shrieked. "What the hell kind of question is that?"

"Don't be stupid," Harry said. "This is _Muggle_ London, Malfoy. As in, no bloody robes. I can give you a shirt, I'm wearing an extra, but I've only got one pair of pants, and I'd rather not do magic." The look he favored his erstwhile companion with would have done Snape proud.

"Oh," Draco said, a flush rising on his cheeks. "Yes, I am wearing trousers."

"Then what are you waiting for, dunce? Shuck that robe already!" Harry threw a t-shirt at the blonde. He waited just long enough for Draco to pull the shirt on before starting off again.

Harry kept up the pace, leading Draco farther and farther away from the Wizarding world and deeper into the London slums. They passed through areas that Draco would never have gone into on his own and places that weren't quite that bad, until finally stopping in front of a building that looked like it should have been condemned before Hogwarts was built.

"Uh, Potter, is _this_ where we are going?" The blonde shot a dubious look at the building.

Harry smirked. "Don't worry, it's better on the inside," he said. Then he shook his head, "never mind, you'll hate it anyway, I doubt it's up to your standards." He led the way up to the building's front door and once inside, began jogging up the stairs.

Five flights later Draco was panting, cursing under his breath...at least when he could get enough air to do so, and sweating. "Goddamn it Potter, how many fucking floors does this hellhole have? And are you a fucking bird or what?"

Harry laughed, causing Draco to grumble even more. "Keep your pants on, Malfoy," he said, "we're here." He unlocked the door and entered in front of the Slytherin boy.

Draco felt the tingle of exceedingly strong wards as he followed Harry into the flat. He glanced around at the room they'd entered. He'd expected the worst, but was surprised by the cleanliness of the flat. Obviously it had been ages since any work was done, the walls were stained and the floors were atrocious, but someone had taken care to remove every single speck of dust and dirt.

Everything was muggle, save for the potion setup on the kitchen counter. 'Potions,' Draco thought, 'why would Potter, who sucks at potions, have that here?' Shrugging off the thought, he continued his perusal of Potter's abode. 'Not as bad as I thought it would be, but why is he here? Where is his family, his friends, or Dumbledore's people? Isn't he their Golden Boy?'

"So, Scarhead, where's your fan club?"

Harry turned at Draco's sneering question. "How should I know? It's not like I care," he said, lifting one shoulder in a shrug.

The gaping goldfish look on Draco's face was met with a chuckle. "Oh, I guess you are a bit behind, aren't you Malfoy? I suppose it's time to give you some answers."

"That would be most appreciated," Draco managed after he pulled his jaw up from the floor.

_

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OMG- I got reviews! I'm so happy. Okay, opinion time: should I update 800-1000 words everyday or go for longer chapters every few days? And what's the opinion on thank you for reviews? I'm thinking that I'll only reply to those that have specific questions. Let me know how I'm doing, okay?_


	3. A talk

Harry sprawled in a chair, leaving Draco the couch. "Okay Malfoy, I said I would answer some of your questions. Ground rules: if I say drop it, drop it. If you continue a subject after I have said to quit, you lose any chance at getting any other questions answered."

Draco nodded. "Fine. First question, what were you doing in Diagon Alley today anyway?"

"I needed some potion ingredients. The wards keep owls away, so I couldn't have anything delivered," Harry replied.

"There are wards on this apartment. Who put them up?"

"I did."

"How are you using magic outside of school?" Draco was leaning on the edge of his seat now, fully interested in this question.

"I got a present from my godfather," he said, pulling a chain from under his oversized sweatshirt. Dangling from the chain was a tint gold charm in the shape of a lightning bolt. "It hides my magical signature, making any and all tracking spells useless, including the ones that track underage magic."

"Where did he get that?"

"I have no idea. Drop it." Harry frowned. He did not want to talk about Sirius, but unfortunately the questions Malfoy needed answers to could only be answered by talking about his godfather. 'Shit. I'm gonna have to tell him about Sirius,' he thought. Running an irritated hand through his hair, he settled himself deeper into the chair. "What do you know about Sirius Black?"

Draco blinked. "I thought I was the one asking questions here," he said. Then he shook his head. "Never mind, you must have a point here. Black escaped Azkaban. He wasn't a Death Eater. That's all I know."

Harry muttered a pungent curse under his breath. He was going to have to tell Draco everything. After a few minutes and several blistering oaths, he began to speak about his godfather.

At first it was all he could do to force the words out, but as he got involved with the story, it felt like the tale was flowing out of him.

He told Draco about third year: the grim, the map, Remus, the dementors, Pettigrew, even the time-turner. Harry laughed a bit at some of the expressions on Draco's face during the narrative. Before he had a chance to continue the story, Draco broke in.

"You know, Potter, I used to be angry that you refused my friendship first year," he said. "Now I'm just relieved that I didn't have to go through any of that."

"You haven't heard anything yet, Malfoy," Harry said, chuckling. "Try to keep up." With that, he launched into Sirius's role in the last two years of Harry's life. Talking about the department of mysteries choked him up and he had to fight back tears. Finally, he finished the tale, touching on the talk he'd had with Luna. He took several deep breaths before continuing.

"So I went back to the Dursley's, but I got an owl the next day. Sirius had set it up to be delivered to me on the first day of summer vacation. There was a small package, and a letter. I don't think he was expecting to die, but he wanted me to have the things he sent, and he didn't want Dumbledore to know he'd sent them."

Draco looked a bit surprised. "Why not? Didn't he trust the old man?"

"No, he didn't. Sirius thought that the way that Dumbledore was treating me was inexcusable. He couldn't go against him in plain sight, but he found a way. Here, I'll read you the letter, it will help you understand." Harry hauled himself out of the chair and fetched the letter from another room.

_Dear Harry,_

_Hey kiddo, I know this letter probably comes as something of a surprise, since I more than likely just saw you, but there are things you need to know that Dumbledore isn't going to tell you. Your parents' were targeted by Voldemort for more than just being who they were. You see, there's a prophecy about you and the dark git, and that's why he wants you dead so badly. I don't know all of it, but I assume that you will have something to do with getting rid of him._

_Problem is, you need to know this, and no one's telling you. Even worse, no one's training you. You get into trouble for protecting yourself, and I'm convinced that nothing is going to change anytime soon._

_So here I am, going against Dumbledore because he's wrong. Sadly, this isn't his only mistake, and I find myself unable to justify some of the things he's done. If the blood protection at the Dursley's is so all important, fine. But no one checked on you for ten years. I know Arabella was there, but she's a squib, and she wasn't in the house. I have my suspicions about your home life, and let me tell you, if I didn't have you to restrain me, I think those muggles would be dead._

_Anyway, off of that subject, because I know you well enough that you are uncomfortable with it, and I know you aren't going to tell me if I'm right._

_On to the real purpose of this letter. I have enclosed a few things you need. One is a necklace. The pendant will scramble your magical signature, allowing you to use magic without the ministry finding out. I have one too, so don't even think about giving it back. The next thing is a debit card. It's linked to a muggle bank account that Remus started for me. I told him it was for me, but Moony is bright enough to know that it's for you, I'm sure. Thing is, he still can't do anything about it. Inside the envelope the card is on are all of the documents you need to become Greyson Smith, should you ever need an escape. You're listed as sixteen, so don't use them if you don't have to, you won't pass all that well until you hit a growth spurt. Feel free to use the money, it'll work just fine._

_The final three things in the box are a bit harder to explain, which is why they have instructions with them. The two books are very important, and you must NEVER let Dumbledore know that you have them. One is ancient text on wards, the other is a journal that I have written for you. It contains everything I know that could conceivably help you stay alive. I can't say that it will help you defeat Voldemort, because I have no idea how to do that, but the book is full of how to fight, how to hide, and other useful things to give you a fighting chance while you look for a way to kill him. A very large chunk of that book is dark in nature, but I would rather you go a bit dark than to see you die. _

_And the last thing is a vial of my blood. Why? Read the books and the directions. The blood of someone who would die for you is a very powerful thing in protection magic. Of course it's highly illegal, but I think you know how little that concerns me._

_Kiddo, I was never good with emotions, and Azkaban made it worse, but I do love you and I would do anything to keep you safe. My advice to you, here in a forum that the Order cannot control, is to Fight. Let no one, no matter their intentions, control you. You are not a slave, and you should not be treated like one. In the end, it is your life, and if you have to tell Dumbledore to go to hell, do it. Your life is not his. You are not a pawn._

_Love, Sirius._

"Whoa," Draco breathed. "He could have gone back to Azkaban for that, even if they proved him innocent of what he was convicted of."

Harry sighed. "Don't I know it. Not that it matters now that he's dead, they can't hurt him, and I won't let them catch me."

"So you used the blood to set the wards?"

"Yeah. The wards on this place are stronger than any I've ever heard of," Harry said. "They're better than Hogwarts, better than the Dursleys', better than the headquarters of the order."

Draco nodded. "They're much stronger than Malfoy Manor, and those are considered very strong for a home. But why are you here, Potter? Why not with the Order, or with the muggles. You said something about being caught. Are you on the run?"

Green eyes rolled. "Malfoy, don't be dense. Of _course_ I'm on the run! In fact, I'm currently hiding from four sets of people."

"Four? Aren't you talented? Enlighten me."

"First, I'm hiding from Voldemort. Personally, I'd like to live long enough to kill him. Since I can't do that yet, I'll hide. Throw all his lackeys in with him, make that one group. Then there's the ministry. If Fudge can't use me, he'd like to have me thrown in Azkaban as a dark wizard." Harry broke off at Draco's snort.

"Don't laugh, technically I _am_ a dark wizard. I have cast an unforgivable, I use blood magic, and I'm contemplating worse. So the ministry is two. Then, of course, there's our illustrious headmaster and his gang of idiots, they make three because they want to haul me back to the Dursleys'. And finally, we have the muggles, both the ones that I am so unfortunately related to, and the authorities, who if they caught me would either send me to the Dursleys' or an orphanage. That's four. Merlin's beard, I'm running from damn near everyone I know!"

Draco smirked for a moment, then sobered. "Potter, you get into the most trouble of anyone I've ever heard of. I understand why the death eaters and the ministry are after you, but I don't understand why your opinion of Dumbledore and the Order has changed. Aren't all you Gryffindors on the same side?"

"Oh for fuck's sake, Malfoy! Were you listening to Sirius's letter? That meddling old man is going to get me killed. I for one am not ready to die. If he knew, and he did, that Voldemort was going to be after me, then why did he let me run around ignorant? I think that every one of my _adventures_ has been nothing more than his barmy way of turning me into what he wants: an idiotic, rash hero who rushes in to save the day, even if certain death awaits," Harry snarled.

"And is that what you are?"

"No, at least not until I came to Hogwarts," Harry said, still highly agitated. "I used to have a fucking brain! Not to mention some sense of self-preservation. I'm no one's hero... but I will survive, no matter what."

"You're a bloody Slytherin," Draco breathed.

"Bingo, Malfoy, you win the prize."

* * *

_Sorry this took so long, but I was hoping to get a tie breaking vote. Oh well, guess I'll just use my somewhat questionable judgement. Thank you to those who reveiwed._

_Next time: More on why Harry doesn't trust the order... and why he ran._

_Later - verdragon_


	4. What's up with Harry

Draco looked at Harry, speechless. "But you're the Golden Boy! The epitome of the light side. How in hell are you a Slytherin? And why are you in Gryffindor?"

Harry had to laugh again. "Damn Draco, you're more amusing than anything I've seen this summer. In no way am I a Golden anything. And I should have been a Slytherin, but there are a few reasons I'm not.

"First, there's the fact that my first contacts with the wizarding world were Hagrid and Ron, who both made it abundantly clear that evil wizards came from Slytherin. Then I met you, and you were an irritating, arrogant little prat, so certainly I didn't want to be a Slytherin. So I made the hat put me anywhere but Slytherin."

Running his hand through his hair for what felt like the millionth time that day, Harry sighed. "Masks are things you should understand, Malfoy. I've worn more than my share, and I'm sure you have as well. Thing is, I had to make my choice at eleven, with a grand total of less than ten hours experience in the wizarding world. I needed to be accepted, and it was apparent to me that I couldn't be a Slytherin without a great deal of acrimony. So I made my decision, and for five years I thought it was the right one."

Harry shifted in his seat under Draco's piercing stare. "Yeah, well, I didn't have all of the facts then. In fact, I don't have them all now. But I know enough now to know that I should never have trusted that manipulative bastard of a headmaster."

"Why not?" Draco had an honestly inquisitive look on his face. "I figured he'd be okay with you gryffs."

A bitter laugh rolled through the room. "Oh that's rich. Gryffindors are his biggest pawns. They suffer through more of his manipulations than anyone, although the poor bastards generally don't know it. He runs their lives from the moment they enter the school, and keeps the reins even after they graduate. At least the Slytherins know what's coming. The Gryffindors are absolutely clueless."

"True. But I want details, Potter. What has he done to _you_?"

Trust a Slytherin to go for the jugular. "Who do you think left me with the Dursleys'? If he knew what went on in that house, then he is as guilty as they are, if not, then it was a failure of judgement and criminally negligent for him to leave a defenseless magical child with muggles who hate magic and never check on him."

Harry jumped to his feet, unable to talk about the headmaster while sitting calmly. "Who keeps hiring DADA professors who nearly kill me? Even Remus, much as I love him, was a distinct danger, especially since he had to rely on a man who hated him for his potion. And you seriously can't convince me that he doesn't know everything that happens in that castle. Between the wards and the portraits, he knows. Hell, even I get some information from the wards, so I know he gets more."

"You get information from the wards? What the hell?"

"Oh, Hogwarts likes me. She always has. But over the last year, I've started getting a bit more from her. Never mind, it's not really important, except that he should get all of the information, being headmaster. So why the hell was I fighting Voldemort, or a Basilisk? Why didn't he know that Pettigrew was in the school as a rat? Why didn't he save Moody, or keep me from being in the Tournament?"

Harry whirled around, fists clenched. "Because it was training. Training in how to be a hero. More proof that I needed to jump in and fix things. Everything that happened was planned to make me his warrior of light, his pawn to die on the battlefield, taking Voldemort with me. Then he could again bask in the gratitude of the Wizarding world, and get even more support since the martyred hero supported him."

"I think you're right about Dumbledore, Potter, but why the change now? Did you just wake up to the manipulations?" Draco asked.

"No, that wasn't it. Last year was the turning point. You see, I had accepted the manipulations, I was playing my role... but I found out that he was hiding some things from me that made my role different. I have a connection to Voldemort in my head, Draco, and if he had told me _why_ I needed to keep Voldemort out of my head, maybe I could have put up with Snape and learned."

"You have the Dark Lord in your head? Is that what makes you have those fits?"

"Of course. Anyway, they tell me nothing, give me nothing to work with, and it got Sirius killed." Harry stopped for a moment, swallowing with difficulty. "Sirius was the first person I ever considered dropping the masks for. My decisions, made with inadequate information, killed him. I am through with losing what I care for because that fucking old man is grooming me to be the light's sacrificial savior."

"So what are you going to do now?"

"Simple. I am going to survive. That's what I do. Since I have to kill the dark git to live, I cannot allow any more manipulation. The old bastard has no idea who he's dealing with." Harry flung himself back into the chair he earlier vacated in favor of pacing.

Draco was silent for a few minutes as he assimilated the information Harry had given him. Thoughts whirled through his head as he tried to reconcile the Harry Potter in front of him to the boy he'd antagonized for five years. Though at first he couldn't make the connections, after some thought he realized that there had always been signs of this Harry.

The determination that Harry had always had was what Draco remembered first. He then turned his mind to the fact that Harry always survived, just like he said. Most adults couldn't cast a corporeal patronus, but Harry had learned at 13, because he needed to survive. A pattern presented itself to Draco. Harry never trusted anyone to defend him or keep him alive. He would accept aid in preparing to defend himself, but when push came to shove, Harry expected to be alone.

* * *

With a sigh, Draco realized that Harry's expectation was justified. From everything he'd heard about Harry's adventures, he always ended up alone. Whatever battle he faced for the year, the final stage of it was always met with no one but himself to rely upon. Yet Harry always survived. A somewhat strangled laugh burst from Draco's throat as he realized that Harry was entirely correct in his self-assessment; Harry Potter was a survivor.

"So what now Potter?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Now, we eat, then we sleep. We can figure out where we go from here tomorrow."

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_That's it for now. Sorry that took so long, but I hate writing such dialouge heavy chapters. It would have been so much easier if they hadn't needed to have this talk. Sadly, there will be a few more chapters like this before things heat up. Expect flashbacks over the next few chapters, sorta how the boys spent the first couple weeks of summer._

_Review if you want... I love them._


	5. Shopping

The two wizards avoided serious conversation over the next two days. Draco wasn't ready to tell Harry about his life, and Harry needed to build more trust in the blonde before he spilled anymore of his secrets. Instead they spoke of neutral subjects, like the OWLs, quidditch, and a few other safe subjects.

Both were amazed to find how well they got on when they tried. The second day, Harry took a chance and told Draco to get ready to go out.

"Where are we going?" Draco asked, a small frown marring his face. "Not Diagon Alley?"

"No, we'd make too much of a stir there," Harry replied. "We need clothes. You don't have any, and mine are more suited for use as tent fabric. Unfortunately, we have to get muggle clothes. Well, not that it bothers me, but it'll be a change for you."

Draco nodded. "I see your point. Besides, it's not like we can't get robes later. Only one problem... I have absolutely no idea about muggle fashion. Not that I care if I'm fashionable to muggles or anything, but I don't want to stick out."

Harry laughed. "Malfoy, there's no fashion police. Besides, the muggles don't all dress the same, so as long as we don't care what they think, we can dress however we like. As long as we don't look like wizards, we're free to do as we please. Come on, let's go."

So they went shopping for the rest of the day. They looked in several stores before deciding what kind of clothing they wanted, finally settling on rather dark, somewhat disturbing, clothes. Harry's clothes were almost all black, with chains and buckles in silver. Draco had less metal on his clothes, but almost every shirt he picked had a rude saying on it. Harry commented on it, and Draco's reply made him snort.

"Potter," Draco said. "I can't be wasting my time telling everybody what morons they are. Now my shirts can do it for me... if the imbeciles are bright enough to read."

After they had clothes, the two boys wandered around the mall for awhile, repeatedly passing a combination tattoo parlor and piercing shop. Finally, Harry stopped and looked at Draco.

"Okay, we've passed here nearly half a dozen times," he said. "I am going in and getting something pierced. What about you?"

"Potter, are you nuts?" Draco gaped at the shorter boy. "Of _course _I'm getting something pierced! But then, we have one more stop to make."

"What's that?"

"The optometrist. You need to get rid of those glasses. There are certainly better frames than that, and I heard one of the students say something about 'contacts' that can make your vision better without glasses. Maybe you could make some of them."

Harry laughed. "Contacts are little plastic lenses that go on your eyes, Draco. You get them from the optometrist, just like glasses. But that's a really good idea, I haven't had new glasses in ages."

Harry led the way into the piercing shop. Loud music assaulted their ears as their eyes tried to take in the outrageous interior.

A girl mirroring Harry's taste in clothing smirked at them. "Ah, I love it when we get virgins," she said. Both boys looked at her in horror. She laughed. "Just kidding. Anyway, what do you two want done?"

Walking out of the shop half an hour later, both boys had enough piercings to make Molly Weasley faint. Harry had gotten a total of seven piercings, four in his left ear; two in the lobe and two in the cartilage; two in his right ear, one in the lobe and one in the cartilage; and finally one in his tongue. Draco hadn't gone quite as far, with one earring in the cartilage of his left ear, but he had also gotten a hoop through his left nipple.

While they were in the shop, the girl had also put makeup on both boys. Just black eyeliner and lipstick on Draco, but Harry had gotten the works: concealer on his scar, and eyeshadow and mascara to go with his eyeliner and lipstick.

After a trip to the optometrist, they went back to Harry's flat, with Draco muttering about muggle girls who had no need for the imperious curse, because they could get anyone to do what they wanted anyway.

"Malfoy, would you just shut the fuck up about it already?" Harry nearly screamed after they entered the flat. "She didn't do anything you didn't agree to, and you can't even claim it looks bad. Besides, it's makeup, it washes off."

Draco stood there, mouth opening and closing soundlessly. Harry just laughed, and went into his room to drop off his bags.

* * *

Finally, after another few days with Harry, Draco screwed up his courage and asked the question that had been plaguing his mind ever since he had heard Harry's explanations.

"Potter, why did you leave your relatives, and how did you do it?"

Harry sank down on his chair, sighing. "Sit down, Malfoy. This is a long story. It all began when we drove away from King's Cross..."

_

* * *

Hey all, sorry it took so long and that it's so short. I'm having problems with plot bunnies for other stories and I'm trying to stay focused here. Also, I had to abandon a bunny that would have messed up the story. So next time, you get to see why Harry left the Dursleys', and how he disappeared from the Order. Review if you like, I love to get those alerts!_


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